Sturaro is not joining Fiorentina

With Milan Badelj expected to leave Florence some time this summer (although there has been precisely zero interest in him thus far), Stefano Pioli needs someone to partner Matías Vecino in the middle of his 4-2-3-1. That fact, combined with the pending transfer of Federico Bernardeschi to Juventus, had a variety of pundits speculating that Stefano Sturaro could end up with the Viola as part of the deal.

Sturaro’s agent has unequivocally quashed that train of thought, though. In a recent interview, he admitted that, yes, Corvino had requested that the ex-Genoa star as a makeweight in the Berna deal, but that both the Bianconeri and the player himself immediately rejected the move.

Although it would have meant a massive uptick in playing time, the 24-year-old foresees a major role in Turin in the not-so-distant future, and the club apparently agrees, even though Max Allegri only started him in 15 of 28 matches this season and left him as an unused substitute in 10 more.

If nothing else, it’s a fascinating glimpse at the world of the Corvinata: while various observers had figured that Sturaro would be a perfect fit under Pioli’s Viola, there wasn’t a peep from the Fiorentina brass that a move for him was under consideration. If not for the agent’s forthrightness, we never would have known that Corvino attempted to bring him aboard. Just makes you wonder how many other trees the Crow goes barking up before actually producing a result.